Moor Larkin

Having just ordered a copy of screenonline: Curtain Up (1952) starring Margaret Rutherford and Robert Morley, and directed by Ralph Smart............ ........ I wondered if any members could point me toward any other movies that might contain studies of the brief post-war flowering of British Repertory Theatre, or perhaps extended location footage of actual repertory theatres.

My area of interest only extends probably from 1946 to 1960. Many thanks for any ideas.

batman

Natasha Parry's character in The Dark Man is an actress appearing in rep with several scenes in the theatre. Also, the Peter Finch section in Train of Events features him as a rep actor and again there are theatre scenes. Does The Entertainer count? Not strictly rep but a good evocation of theatrical life. There are another couple I can recall but can't rememeber the titles! I'll keep thinking ...

Bats

Don't miss out on a chance to win a rare film in Bat-Quiz 13 closing date - 31/8/8.

Windthrop

Look Back in Anger has rep scenes
The Comedy Man though strictly beyond 1960 is about a rep actor - great film

There is also an excellent book on the subject by Kate Dunn

Exit Through The Fireplace: The Great Days Of Rep

and Michael Blakemore's first volume of bio (Arguments with England) has a lot to do with the great days of rep and his ten years as a rep actor and the characters he met, theatres he played at and the eccentric little world it was. Also a section on On Monday Next which was the original stage title of Curtain Up.

That's the joke that killed the Music Hall

PeterJ

Alfred Hithcock's "Stage Fright" comes immediately to mind and then "The Good Companions" by J B Priestley but the original film was pre-war of course. More recently there was "Noises Off" starring Michael Caine. Other than that nothing comes to mind in the way of films about straight legitimate reperatory companies. If I get any more idea on the subject I will get back to you.
PeterJ

Moor Larkin

Probably not Sir Larry. That was more Variety wasn't it? Wasn't he kind of based on The Cheeky Chappie? (Artistic licence permitting )

I hadn't come across that book. I've got a couple that were contemporary in the Fifties, plus magazines of the day.

Yes. Peter Sallis' book is excellent in that regard too. I'll look out for that one.

Thankyou. It's about time I watched a Hitchcock film again. Does he make an 'appearance' in that one?. I suppose the immediate post-war rep. would not have been dissimilar to the pre-war, as people began to pick up their lives once again......

It does seem a trifle strange that the rep wasn't reflected more in the glut of British 'culture' in the Fifties. I read Beryl Bainbridge's 'An Awfully Big Adventure', a darkly evocative story, but not especially so in regard to its setting.

batman

The film version of that book is pretty good with an excellent performance from Alan Rickman and a surprisingly effective one from Hugh Grant.

Bats.

Don't miss out on a chance to win a rare film in Bat-Quiz 13 closing date - 31/8/8.

sippog

"The Comedy Man", mentioned earlier, was one of a series of novels by Douglas Hayes based on his experiences in post-war rep. Another was "A Fairly Good Address". They're entertaining reads and provide great insight into the charming but seedy bygone world of weeks in Oldham playing in NIGHT MUST FALL and CHARLIE'S AUNT in the days when actors were expected to provide their own evening dress and flannels and used lard to remove their slap.

I'm sure they're long out of print but you can find most things on the web these days

Windthrop

Up until the late fifties the british cinema tended (though not always) to show the glamorous side of life. Rep would have been deemed by some as a bit downmarket and seedy and I can imagine might have been a bit close to home and would remind those writing and appearing in films where many of them had come from and, if they were unlucky, come go back to. On Monday Next aka Curtain Up (which I did in amdram) was a flop in the provinces because audiences felt very loyal and protective of their local Reps and did not take kindly to having them sent up in the play. Michael Blakemore reflects this in his bio.

That's the joke that killed the Music Hall

PeterJ

I haven't heard of that book or movie. Does the movie have the same title and when was it released?
PeterJ

batman

Yep.

An Awfully Big Adventure (1995)

Bats.

Don't miss out on a chance to win a rare film in Bat-Quiz 13 closing date - 31/8/8.

howard 65

The film is a lovely look at a lost way of life.

Does RETURN TO YESTERDAY from 1940 count; it features CLIVE BROOK as a once famous Hollywood star going back to his rep routes in S W England and is a another fine film.

Rob Compton

I would love to see this film - does anyone have a copy?

Many thanks
Rob

Moor Larkin

He actually kind of did that in real life after the war. I have an anecdote about him in an old theatre magazine about returning to the stage after becoming a movie-star. I'm sure it was on the West End stage, but I imagine there may have been a small regional tour before that, (as they did in those days, to refine their productions).

"Mr. Brook had not attained stardom on the stage when he made his first film in 1924. He was to become one of the biggest names in the history of moving pictures. In 1945 he felt the urge to return to the stage and felt confident that he had found the right vehicle in 'The Years In Between'. The first night tryout was the grimmest ordeal of his career. He had left the stage as a novice and returned as an internationally famous filmstar. Much was expected of him. Could he fulfill the public's expectations? When he made his entrance he was greeted by a deafening welcome from the auditorium, but for one awful moment he felt he might lose his nerve and have to take refuge in the wings. By sheer will-power he forced himself to get through the first scene and the tide turned."

It mirrored Patrick McGoohan's memoir about his return to the stage in the 1980's when he appeared on Broadway, after a quarter-century away. 1945 & 1985

Moor Larkin

Getting back to the point of the Thread.

I finally got my dvd of Curtain Up and watched it last evening. What an excellent little film it was, until the last 10 minutes when it seemed to get 'wrapped up' with indecent haste. Until the point Robert Morley fell through the stage-floor it was superb.

It certainly pointed up to me how vital it is for people to be able to watch these films for themselves. Reviews (what few I could find) for this film dismissed it as pompous irrelevance and the sort of thing that gave British movies a bad name before the revolution of the social conscience of the 1960's. Morley and Rutherford were said to just thesp it up outrageously.
screenonline: Curtain Up (1952)

All poppycock.

The film was evidently made inside an old, small theatre (or a perfect repro. thereof) so the location footage is brilliantly informative. Morley and Rutherford were superbly eloquent but the ability to speak quickly and clearly might be taken as 'thesping' I suppose. For me it just added to the impression of the skills developed by these stage performers.

There was a milieu of small stories whirling around the screenplay which the unfortunate, truncated ending (all the signs of some overriding 'producer' decision) failed to tease out. However the mechanics of the tales being woven was immaculate and the players excellent. I must locate a copy of the 'real' play to see exactly how 'Monday Next' played out.



Anyhow the impression from the 'official archives' that this film was all form and pomposity is utterly untrue. Who writes this rubbish? Did they ever watch the film themselves or just crib something from Halliwells ?